Facing Off Again
by KidHeart4
Summary: Peace has swept over Anaheim since the Final Face Off, but is it meant to last? Duke and Heart begin to uncover something kept deep within her and others may wish to harness it.


Facing Off Again

By: KidHeart

Disclaimer: I do not own Disney's The Mighty Ducks or any of it's characters. I do own Heart though.

"Wait up Dive!" I called to my twin as he ran down the street towards the mall.

"Hurry up, my new comics are in!" Nosedive yelled back over his shoulder, pausing a moment so I could catch up.

We stood at the gate of the shopping mall. The comic shop was in sight. I shook my head as I caught my breath, "We've been rushed less in battles!"

"Sorry Sis!" Nosedive said patting her shoulder playfully.

After a moment I found myself quickly following my twin again until e reached his favorite shop. Once inside Nosedive found Thrash immiediately and started talking up a storm about their new favorite super hero. Meanwhile I explored the shelves trying to find something new to read as I waited.

After about an hour we left with several comics in Nosedive's hands, "This is gonna be awesome! We've won the championship, those lizards are deep underwater, and we have so much more freetime now!"

I smiled cheerfully at my brother. It had been such a long time since we had had time like this together as siblings. Our last few weeks since the championship had given the entire team a chance to relax. That very night they were going out all together for the first time in what felt like ages to me. No publicity stunts, no journalists, no enemies. Just us all together.

"Let's get back home!" I said still smiling.

"You're in a good mood sis," Nosedive noted as he looked through one of his new comics.

"Dive we haven't been able to live like this since before the invasion back on Puck World," I realized aloud, "We still fight crime, but it isn't a war anymore!"

"It is kinda nice to not have to worry about those lizards popping up whenever I want to try and chill," Nosedive agreed.

Not to long after we had returned home to the pond. It's parking lot seemed strangely empty after the last few games causing it to be packed full. Wildwing's statue guarded the doors of our home here on the surface. It felt so strange even now seeing it stand so proudly. Every so often I noticed kids sitting on top of the stone block at the statue's feet, happily taking photos with their families and friends. Once in a while Buzz brought his new friends to visit and he always loved telling his story in front of the statue of how he first met us. I guess it felt strange now because we rarely used the front doors to leave or return. We normally left by Migrator or the Aerowing.

Once within the walls of our headquarters we found our teammates. Wildwing and Mallory were talking together about something. I noted that the two had been spending more time together recently, and I had teased my big brother about their not so secret outings. Grin was meditating. Tanya was working on an update for Drake One. And Duke had already looked up from his book when he heard Dive and I enter the room together. I could barely keep myself from running over to him as I threw my arms around his shoulders, hugging him as he was still sitting in his chair.

Duke smirked as he was wrapped his arms around me, pulling me onto his lap and refusing to let go once he had me. Evetually I gave in and rested against him as I watched our other teammates shake their heads good naturedly.

That afternoon the others still had their practice, but afterwards we were free to get ready for our evening out. Mallory and Tanya had taken me out a few days prior for a ladies day out. While we were shopping I had found myself picking out things like skirts and dresses.

I recalled our first days on Earth and how clothing such as these hadn't ever come to mind before. Being with the others had changed how I felt about myself. I felt so much more confident than I had been before. Over a year later so much had changed in my life. I had a stable home, a team of friends that were truly my family, someone who loved me and looked to me for unwaivering trust, and I had grown stronger. Though my past was still lost to me, I didn't question where I was meant to be now.

"Ravishin'," he said as I stepped out from the changing screen we had in our room.

Duke:

She stood before me in a flowing, short skirted, burgundy dress. The dress had one over shoulder piece that was fastened with a crescent moon clasp. On her feet were short black flat boots. Her hair was tied with a black, silk ribbon. Around her neck was the sapphire heart necklace I had given her.

"So you like it?" She asked me while blushing.

I walked up to her, taking her hand and kissing it gently. Her blushing nearly matched the deep burgundy red of her hair.

I myself was wearing a burgundy long sleeved shirt with a light black open vest and dark shaded jeans.

Soon we were headed out with the others. Though I offered Heart a ride for just the two of us on one of the duckcycles. She seemed to like the idea. We then told the others we would meet them at the that we headed out together.

Yet as we drove along, for a few moments I thought the rode beneath us was beginning to shake. I pulled to the side to see if it continued, and so had others.

"An earthquake?" Heart asked worriedly.

"I'm not sure sweetheart," I told her as I looked around.

It felt as though the shaking were emerging from somewhere, somewhere off the coast. The coast, where there crashed ship was. I felt Heart grip my shoulders as she must have feared the same thing I had just then. Were they back? In moments we took off again, heading for the coast. It was as though we needed to prove to ourselves that we were wrong. They had crashed badly, there was no way they could resurface now!

Yet as we drew closer, the rumbling we felt grew harsher with every mile. The ocean roared with anger as something pierced it from beneath it's surface.

"No!" Heart gasped from behind me, clutching the fabric of my shirt.

Just as we feared, the raptor emerged from beneath the waves, escaping the depths of their watery prison they had made for themselves. Somehow they had survived, and had gotten enough power to make the raptor fly for a brief time as it landed in the mountains outside the city.

The others had joined us at this point They too must have noticed the quaking caused by the rising airship. They had met us out at the cliff now as they watched the raptor go invisible as it reached the sky briefly, then we heard it head off to the mountains.

"What do we do guys?" Tanya asked worriedly.

"We don't know where they landed, nor can we tell what they're up to until they make their first move. They probably only had enough power to relocate for now. All we can do is be ready for the fight as we always have been," Wildwing said with a tinge of dispair in his voice.

It seemed that we all had hoped the same thing. That we could finally be finished with this fight and move forward together from it. We had already been fighting this battle for over a year now.

"Let's try to go have some fun for now, if those lizards show their sorry scales we'll kick their tails just like before! There's nothing to worry about!" Nosedive assured with full confidence.

We all agreed to go to dinner still. There we tried to enjoy what we feared would be our last normal night for a while again.

"Guys there's nothing to worry about!" Nosedive insisted, "Yeah it's more work, but we had so many adventures before. We just need to try and enjoy the time we have when we can."

"You're right little brother," Wildwing agreed as he looked to Mallory, blushing as she gestured for him to try dancing with her.

I decided to take follow their que and asked Heart to dance with me as well, leaving Dive, Grin and Tanya talking together at the table.

"It's gonna be okay sweetheart," I told Heart as we danced.

As she spun into me she looked up at me with concern deep in her sapphire eyes, "I had hoped this was all over with now. We've been fighting for so long."

I spun her carefully under my hand and her skirt twirled a bit from the motion, "I know angel. I've been enjoyin' the peace with you an' the others too."

She pulled away from the spin, her hair growing loose from the ribbon as she danced, "I just want everyone to be happy. I don't want anyone to have to fight like they had to before. I know we've enjoyed many happy times here too, but I just-"

I pulled her into me, looping my arm around her back now as the dance came to an end. Again I looked into her eyes as she looked up into mine. In the moment I saw her smile, as though a spark of passion rushed over her expression.

"We'll be as we always have been Heart, I promise ya that. We will all be together through everythin' that comes our way, an' I won't let anyone take you away from me. No matter what it takes."

Her smile became strong and genuine again hearing what had become our team's promise of encouragement. From that moment on the rest of the night went on as we all had hoped. We laughed, we danced, we celebrated our recent championship win, and our morale was boosted again. Finally we returned to the pond that we all called home.

Heart:

A few nights later however, a restless feeling washed over me. It was as though I were waiting for the call to action to spur us into battle again. We all knew Dragonus was out there again, biding his time and planning something. And a feeling deep in my core was causing a pit to form in my chest.

One night it got the better of me, and I found myself unable to sleep. I sat up quietly in our bed, watching him as he slept. Yet as I went to step out of bed I felt his smooth hand brush mine. I looked to see him watching me.

"You're a light sleeper," I said to him softly.

"Kinda had ta be in my previous line of work," he smirked as he sat up, "What's the matter sweetheart?"

I shrugged, not really knowing what to say. We had been over it several times since that night. All of us had.

Duke then got up and went to retrieve something tucked away in our closet. He returned with the mended suits that we had worn when we battled Falcone a few months ago. I looked to him curiously.

"Let's see if you an' I can find anythin' out," he suggested, and I realized that he had been feeling the same way.

"Won't the others be worried?" I mentioned as I held my bodysuit in my hands.

"We'll be careful, but I want ta know what they're plannin' before they spring it on us, we've waited long enough," Duke said.

He didn't need muh to convince me as I was soon getting dressed. The bodysuit felt comforting against my skin, as though it were calming my nerves just to wear it again. Something about wearing this again made me feel excited. I remembered seeing Duke in his for the first time, and I felt my knees growing weak when I saw him wearing his again. He seemed to notice as he smiled at me, swiftly stepping towards me and kissing my cheek. There was a certain thrill knowing it would just be he and I again on a mission. When the group split up on missions he and I were nearly always together, but this was more than that. It was as though I got to see a side to him that rarely got to come out. A part of Duke that made him the drake that I knew now.

"Ready sweetheart?" He asked me softly as we slipped into the hallway.

I nodded as I quietly walked along with him.

The pond was silent and calm as we walked it's halls. The lights were lowered for the night to emit a tranquil feeling. This provided a nice cover for us as we found our way to the hanger and found a duckcycle to drive out on. With the night air cloaking us we were off, heading towards the mountains where we had seen the ship before it vanished and landed.

Duke asked me to check for energy readings as we got closer to the mountain peak. Sure enough a signal began to beep on my com. Duke and I pulled to the side to examine the map on our comms. We then set them to silent so no one could give us away if they tried to contact us.

We hid our bike and started to look around for any signs of the saurians. At first everything seemed rather normal, but as we grew closer to what appeared to be a radio tower, we began to notice tracks leading to it. Lizardmen steps left by Seige and the Chameleon. Duke and I decided to stay among the trees for cover as we searched the area for any other clues we could find.

After a few minutes of creeping forward cautiously we heard voices bickering nearby. Duke and I crept through the thick cover of the trees, blending with the shadows, until we found them. We couldn't quite hear what they were saying, but we had a feeling they were at the entrance of the Raptor, arguing outside it's entrance. Duke smiled at me, then he crouched down to try and get closer. I decided to follow suit.

"We need more energy to power the raptor or it won't fly!" We heard Dragonus snarl over their communicator.

"Where do you want us to get energy Lord Dragonus?" Siege asked fearfully.

"Scout around and see what sources you can find, anything to get us in the air so we can conquer this world and give payback to those acursed ducks!" Dragonus snapped angrily.

Duke looked to me as he gestured for me to follow him back into the forest. That's when Wraith appeared beside his comrads clutching his staff, "I've found one of the ducks' vehicles outside the mountain peak! They must have sent someone to try and locate us!"

"Find them before they can escape the mountain! We don't need them messing with our plans any further than they have already!" Dragonus ordered.

The three then split off to try and find us, while Duke pulled me close to him to try and hide us both in the thick bushes we had slipped behind. Trees around us shielded us, providing further cover. Yet the concern was getting to our bikes to try and get away.

"They may only think it's one of us here," Duke whispered, "I can distract them while you get away and tell the others, it's too risky to try and call them from here."

"I'm not leaving you here Duke," I protested firmly, "We can get out of this together."

"Dark powers of our saurian ancestors, seek out our intruders so that we may cease their attempt to escape!" Wraith called with his staff held up.

With that a strange light rushed towards us, following our trail.

"Heart run!" Duke insisted, but I refused to leave his side.

Before either of us could say anything or move forward Wraith appeared behind Duke, the light from before wrapped around him and ensnared him in it's grip. While the Chameleon appeared behind me, grabbing my arms from behind me as he shifted into his musclebound form.

"Let her go ya creeps!" Duke growled and his arms were pulled behind him with magical binds.

"Why should we do that? We thought you wanted to be our guests, as you did come here uninvited," Wraith laughed wickedly.

His skeletal hand grazed my forehead, remembering the spell he had put on me before, "What fun we could have again!"

"It won't work this time!" I spat.

Their communicator picked up Dragonus's voice, "Bring them to me, I'll deal with the two of them personally!"

Duke tried to break free, but found the binds growing tighter with every movement he made. While Chameleon clamped his bulky hands around my wrists to keep me from slipping away. Though as he pulled my hands together, I slipped a finger against my com and pressed a button to signal distress to our teammates. A breath of hopeful relief escaped through my gritted teeth before I was shoved into the main entrance behind Duke and Wraith. We were then both pushed down to our knees before Dragonus himself.

"Look at what we have here," Dragonus laughed cruely as he looked over us with contempt and disgust, "You two thought you could find us and run back to the others with our plans did you?"

Dragonus then looked at me and chuckled, "And you brought what I needed for my plans."

"What do ya want her for?" Duke demanded, glancing at me for a moment.

"As I recall this girl is not a mere human is she? When she was under Wraith's spell she gave off her own power, did she not?"

Duke:

Heart looked to me confused by this. She had blacked out during that fight, and thus had forgotten about the powers she had shown that day. For the time being we had decided not to tell her unless we were sure. It hadn't happened since, so we thought it may not have been her after all. Though I hadn't been so settled on that. I remembered the raw energry that pushed me back that day when her emotions were in such termoil. It hadn't matched the magic the gem had given off.

"That wasn't her power, that thing you put on her head caused that, not her!" I assured, "It's probably a side effect of the spell."

"Duke?" Heart asked bewildered by all of this.

"It wasn't from her, so jus' let her go!" I insisted.

Dragonus threw back his head and gave out a deep, cruel laughter, "Why would I let her go? So she can run to your pathetic friends and bring them here to rescue you? Besides, I have a feeling you're trying to protect her, but it won't convince me!"

Dragonus wrapped his claws around the nape of Heart's neck, scratching her skin and tugging at her hair as he held her up. Heart winced in pain, but gritted her teeth to keep from crying out. I struggled to break my binds still to try and get him away from her, but the binds grew restrictive around my wrists.

"Duke!" Heart called to me, noticing the binds tightening on me as I fought, "Please stop!"

Dragonus looked to Heart curiously as he held her up, then he looked to me and chuckled, "You two are in love aren't you?"

Heart and I looked to each other, giving him the answer we knew he had already known. They had found out when they had captured her that day and used her against us. Yet a pit of fear tossed in my stomach as Dragonus realized this again. He looked to Heart still laughing, "I think we'll be able to find out if she has powers or not. If she does, I will harness it. If she doesn't then you're both as good as dead!"

"I don't know what you're talking about! I don't have these powers you're talking about!" Heart spat, "Even if I did I would never let you use them!"

Dragonus threw her down to the ground as he strolled over to me confidentally. I had been forced to kneel until this point, and I glared up at him as I did. He stepped over her, but Wraith hovered by her to keep her from moving. The Saurian Warlord then grabbed the front of my suit, tearing the cloth at my throat as he forced me up.

"Even if it meant his life?" Dragonus asked Heart menacingly as he held up his other clawed hand, revealing the blaster attached to his bulky wrist.

"Please! Don't kill him!" Heart begged fearfully.

"So you do care for this drake?" Dragonus smirked.

"It's not really a secret!" Heart spat, glancing at her wedding ring that bared my birthstone as mine did her's.

"Then you'll give me what I want won't you? You wouldn't risk losing him now would you?"

"I don't have any powers!" She insisted, her composure started to crumble as Dragonus held the blaster trained to my chest.

"Then I guess I have no use for either of you, including him!" Dragonus told her as he started up the weapon fastened to his wrist.

"Please!" Heart begged, finding no other words to try and persuade him.

"I'll give you 10 seconds to convince me why I shouldn't kill him right this moment!" He offered, "And I don't mean with your pathetic words!"

Heart's eyes grew wide with panic as he began to count down. Genuine fear gripped her and I couldn't stand to see her breaking down in front of him. I knew she didn't want to give into him, but as she looked at me trying to find an answer I couldn't blame her for what happened. For I would have given anything for her too.

As Dragonus neared to 1 I noticed it again as sparks of energy began to dance around her trembling form defensively. Something had triggered in her core, summoning up whatever she needed to give him what he wanted.

"Let him go!" Her voice waivered in and out as the energy rushed from her.

Dragonus laughed as the blaster still gave off it's threatening glow, about to pierce my heart. He was pushing her, but she had already broken down at this point. Just as Heart threw her hand towards me begging him to stop, Wraith ensnared her with binds around her wrists that seemed to drain and harness the energy that suddenly erupted from her. As it did Dragonus and I were both sent backwards as he released me from his grip. I fell to my knees and Dragonus braced himself to keep from being pushed back further. He then let out a wicked laugh as he approached the restrained young woman before him. He looked to the device she was now attached to and then back to her.

"It seems you will give me the power I need to take over this miserable world!" Dragonus laughed.

Heart pulled at her restraints, but they only tightened around her as they had done to me. Wraith raised his staff, commanding the binds to pull her back and force her to her knees. Siege had stepped behind me to keep me from moving as well. The energy still sparked around her like lightning, but was then drained from her and ciphened into the device she was connected to.

"She's not your battery!" I snapped angrily now.

The raw magic that emerged from her began to lessen now as Heart tried to calm down, seeing my life was safe for the moment. She looked to me with an expression of shame washing over her for giving in to him. Yet I shook my head in an attempt to assure her I wasn't upset with her. Of course we knew what our mission was, and we knew the stakes when we first joined the resistance. However, as I looked at her shaking form and she looked to me, we knew that without the other we would simply be lost.

"That's a good start for now," Dragonus snickered, "We'll bring him back here when we're ready to gather more from you. But be happy, you've saved his life. Any time that we need that magic you posses, we'll let you see him. If you don't give me what I want then I guess that will be the last time you'll be together!"

Siege then grabbed me and began pulling me out of the room.

"Heart!" I called to her as we both struggled to get free in vain, "Heart you're not his power source! I know you're scared of losing each other, but savin' me won't help keep the world safe! Don't let this become your life!"

Dragonus looked to me, knowing the answer as he asked, "So then, would you have let her die if the roles were reversed? Would you have sacrificed her for the greater good of the world?"

I lowered my head in silence, wincing at the thought.

"Love is such a complication isn't it? All your training, all your determination to defeat me, all widdled down because of your attachment to one another!" Dragonus mocked.

Before I was pulled away I looked to Heart again and noticed tears in her eyes as she watched me get dragged away.

Heart:

All I could think to do was hope that the others had seen my distress signal. Yet I also couldn't help but feel ashamed for what had happened. Though I knew my heart would have done anything to save him.

Confusion also ran through my mind. Where had this energy come from? Why was it surfacing now? Did the others know about it? Duke seemed to? Had this happened before and I couldn't remember it? I thought back to when they had captured me before, trying to recall what had happened before I blacked out. The energy had seemed to erupt from my core, my very soul. What was it exactly? I wasn't sure if I would be able to summon it in the same way again. What if I couldn't save him the next time?

Dragonus turned to me, "So a human girl and a drake? Love is certainly puzzling. However I guess it worked in my favor didn't it?"

"That display of magic gave us a quarter of the ship's power back," Wraith reported.

Wraith then raised his staff again, commanding the binds to pull me up and back as they secured me to a seat. I was locked in place at my wrists, ankles, waist, and neck to keep me from moving. The connectors to the device were placed nearby for when they needed them again.

"Rest up and restore your energy girl, his life depends on it," Dragonus chuckled evily as he left the room.

Wraith and Chameleon took turns guarding me, while Siege must have been put in charge of watching Duke. I tried to calm down and think of what to do. I needed to get out and find him somehow. Though they had not missed a step in locking me in place. The binds were made of unyielding steel.

I had hoped that the others would be close by now, but I may have misjudged how deep in the mountains we were.

Duke:

I had been thrown in a cell deep within the raptor. My wrists were binded to energy cuffs in the wall, as were my ankles. If I moved they tightened. Yet I couldn't give up. I couldn't let her become their energy source for the rest of her life. I looked around for a way out. Siege was still waiting outside the prison door with a blaster ready, though he had been given strict orders not to kill me or there plan wouldn't work.

I looked up at the energy bands that held me. I realized that they were fastened against the gloves I wore, if I could try and slip a hand out I could break the rest of the bindings with my saber. I breathed out slowly as I tried to move my wrist as little as possible so not to cause the straps to grow any tighter than they were. At last I slipped my hand out from beneath my glove and the band feeling the difference only tightened around the glove. Then I began to pull my other wrist free. The gloves were soon shredded by the bands, having nothing to resist them. Then I pulled at the restraints at my ankles, ripping them from the wall.

Once I was free I crouched down and crept towards the door, using the dark lighting of the ship to my advantage. They were conserving energy until they could use Heart again for another ciphen of magic. I knelt down beside the cell door and waited for Siege to look and notice I was no longer restrained. I heard a panicked gasp outside the door mere moments later as he quickly rushed in to try and find me. As he looked at the broken binds and torn remains of my gloves I slipped out the cell door and closed it behind me, then I used the heat from my saber to meld the lock shut.

"Let me out of here!" Siege roared angrily as he pounded on the door with his bulky fists.

I stepped back as he tried to use his club tail to try and break down the door. It left a decent dent, but it did not give way.

Quickly I hurried down the hall, pausing only when I came across some hunter drones making their rounds. I crouched down again to try and remain unnoticed. After some time I found myself outside Dragonus's throne room and heard him laughing calmly to himself in triumph.

"That girl's untapped power is just what we needed to get the raptor started again. That's just a start though! That kind of magic can power weapons, warships, anything I need to conquer this planet!" He told Wraith.

"Have you thought of making her the weapon my lord? We controlled her mind once before, we can do it again. Use that boy to keep her in line and we can use her power to finish off the ducks!" Wraith stated.

"That's not a bad idea, but we need her to power the ship first. Then we'll begin the preperations to make her one of our own. Then when she can't resist your spells anylonger, we'll get rid of the drake!" Dragonus agreed.

Wraith laughed wickedly in response to his lord's plan, and I took the chance to slip by the room while they remained distracted. Stealthily I crept carefully down the hall to where Heart was being held. The Chameleon stood at his post outside the entrance, beyond the open doorway I saw her held down by the restraints they had fastened her to.

Behind me I could hear a commotion stirring as Siege had escaped and had gone running to his Lord and Wraith for help. I couldn't wait for a moment for Chameleon to be distracted. I drew my saber and slipped beside him, holding it up as I stood, warning him it was let me by or his life. He seemed to recall my threat from a year ago in regards to Heart and backed down quickly, but assured me that his allies would be coming as he gave the alarm.

I threw caution to the wind as I slammed the door shut behind me and rushed over to Heart to try and get her out.

"Duke!" Heart exclaimed as she looked up at me.

"Let's get ya out sweetheart!" I told her as I started to quickly look over her bindings.

"Why didn't you escape? You could have gotten the others and come back, or-"

"An' risk them disappearin' with you on the ship? Risk losin' ya ta them?" I shook my head as I looked into her eyes, "You an' I both know we couldn't take that kinda risk with each other."

Behind the seat she was fastened to I found a control panel and started trying to release her from the locks that were in place.

"Duke, you have to get out of here!" She insisted.

"I'm not leavin' ya here!" I told her firmly as I tried to find the right controls.

Outside the door we heard Dragonus and his men trying to unlock the sealed door. In the comotion I finally found one of the switches to unlock the restraints. I flipped it to hear it release her neck, then again with her waist.

"Jus' two more," I breathed as I found the switch for her wrists.

Yet before I could flip the switch Dragonus and his men broke down the iron door and walked in. The saurian overlord wasted no time in blasting me with his stun blaster, sending me flying back against the wall. My back buckled at the impact as I let out a painful yell.

"I didn't realize you were ready for another ciphen, let me assist," Dragonus laughed as Wraith used his magic to place the cords for the device around Heart's wrists.

"Don't give in to him Heart!" I told her quickly as I was pulled to my feet by a musclebound formed Chameleon.

"I can't let you die!" She replied fearfully.

"Heart they're goin' ta try an' use you as a weapon! They're goin' ta try an' control you again if you give them what they want! Ya can't give in this time! If ya do they'll use you to destroy our friends an' everyone else!" I explained as I was forced to stand.

"It's not polite to give away surprises," Wraith scolded with a wicked chuckle in his throat.

"It wouldn't work anyway!" I spat, hoping I was right.

I looked to Heart, knowing she was exhausted still from before and frightened to the point of shaking. She was terrified of what would happen if she could not provide the energy Dragonus wanted.

"The others will come an' save ya, don't give him what he wants!" I stated.

"But who will save you boy?" Dragonus snickered as he stepped towards me, towering over me by a good few feet.

Heart:

As I watched the saurian loom over him, I saw nothing but bravery in Duke's expression as he faced them. Yet no matter how much I knew he was right, I couldn't bare to lose him. Just as times before when we had risked our lives in battle, the idea of returning home without him shattered all that I knew. My vow to protect others, the expectations given to me by my teammates as we fought together, this world. As selfish as it was, the thought of him being gone was worse than any of that. I would always have the bond I shared with my teammates, I would always know where my home was now with or without my past. Yet Duke and I both remembered how empty we felt when we didn't know one another. He was at my core, my reason for not needing to run anymore.

Dragnous held Duke up again as he had before, though he wasn't restrained by binds this time, the blast from before had him shaken still. This made it hard for him to fight back as Dragonus grabbed his throat. His grip grew tighter as he laughed, "Well girl, I would summon some energy right about now!"

I pulled at my restraints, trying to get free so I could do something. Yet the steel only bit into my ankles and wrists.

"Heart, don't give in to them! I know you're scared of what might happen, but I can't see ya end up as his mind wiped soldier! I can't-!"

Dragonus's grip prevented Duke from saying anything more.

"Let's try counting down again!"

"Please! I don't know if I have enough energy yet! I need more time!"

"I warned you girl, deliver the energy I need or I deliver him to an early grave! If you love him so much you give me what I require!"

I looked to Duke as he tried to grab at Dragonus's claws to get free, finding his strength returning as he fought against his grip.

"5, 4, 3, 2-"

"No!" I shrieked feeling panic rush through me as Dragonus's claws dug into Duke's throat.

My body suddenly felt hot as energy burst from my core again. Sparks and etheral flames flew towards them, as well as into the device I was attached to. The energy ciphened filled the battery, but then the power in the ship began flickering as though it were overcharged.

"She's gonna overload the engines!" Siege yelled.

Duke:

In the blast Dragonus had released me from surprise. Lights flickered in and out rapidly as the magic from Heart rushed out. When I looked to Heart I found a feral-like look in her eyes. Fear gripped my heart as I wondered if she had been pushed too far. Yet I had to work through it as I used the distraction to reach the control panel and flip the remaining switches that held her down. Heart pulled free of her binds and connectors and quickly got up. Though as she stood she waivered from the fatigue her body was clashing with.

I quickly grabbed her hand, "Come on sweetheart, stay with me okay?"

As the lights finally powered down from the burst of power Heart and I took the sign to run. Dragonus and his men searched for us in the dark, but we evaded their claws and made our way outside of the raptor.

Once outside exhaustion began to take it's toll on Heart as she began to crumble to her knees.

"Just a bit more angel, we need ta get ya away from here!" I told her, but was then taken a back by the wild look in her darkened eyes.

Shaking off shock I pulled her quickly to her feet as we heard Dragonus rushing towards us with his men behind him. We ran as fast and as far as our legs would carry us. Though our bareings were off, and we wound up on the edge of the cliffside of the mountains. In our panic we had gone in the wrong direction.

"You miserable welp!" Dragonus growled as he appeared behind us and knocked us down with a powerful wave of his arm.

Heart and I skidded along the ground, barely keeping from falling off the edge of the cliff behind us. Dragonus stepped towards us, looming over us in a rage. His eyes glowed with fire in them as he seethed with anger and steam through his sharp jaws. I forced myself out of my prone position and shielded Heart's still form.

"You think you can protect her now?" Dragonus demanded, "You both will be ripped apart, figurtively and litteraly!"

"Ya don't scare me!" I spat, remaining steady with Heart stirring behind me.

"Duke?" I heard her ask shakily.

"It's gonna be okay sweetheart," I promised her with certainty remaining in my voice.

"Well I will commend you for rescuing your love from my ship, but your triumph ends here!" Dragonus assured as he knocked us to the side with the force from his blaster, causing Heart to be thrown off the cliffside. Before he could stop me I hurried to the edge and threw my hand out to her.

Heart:

"I've got ya!" He called to me as he grabbed my hand quickly, "Give me your other hand sweetheart!"

I reached up to him just as the looming form of the saurian overlord behind Duke approached us.

"Please! Leave him alone!" I begged as his clawed hand was raised over Duke's back.

"And why should I girl? Will you power my ship and my weapons? Will you give yourself up for his sake?"

"I-"

"No! She won't! I won't let ya control her! I won't let ya steal her away from me!" Duke stated as I looked up at him.

He in turn looked at me and smirked. Before Dragonus could slash his claws over him, Duke jumped to the side and rolled off the cliffside. As we both fell Duke pulled me into his embrace, then he threw his saber in it's grappling hook form towards the wall of the cliff. It stabbed into the steady rocks and Duke swung us to safety below the cliff as we landed roughly on the ground in a pile. Once he realized his plan had worked they let out a laugh that was mixed with excitement and diminishing fear. Relief washed over me as I pushed myself up a little from on-top of him. I shook my head to let him know that what he had just done danced with the edge of insanity.

He then sat up, still laughing softly as he hugged me. His hand ran through my hair, brushing the claw marks Dragonus had left on the back of my neck from earlier.

Above we heard Dragonus starting to give orders for his men to follow us when a force of wind knocked them back a bit. Duke and I looked up to see the Aerowing in the air above us as a rope was lowered down to our position. Duke kept a secure hold on me as he reached up for our lifeline and we were pulled up carefully.

"If you lizards are ready for another match so are we!" Wildwing assured over the intercom, "I suggest you retreat while I'm in a forgiving mood!"

Wildwing turned to us as we stepped up behind him and the others in there seats. Wildwing quickly took note of the claw marks and other injuries I had gained. He then stated over the intercom, "That forgiveness is growing thin Dragonus!"

Dragonus and his men teleported away and they somehow got their ship running just enough to relocate with the power left in it. In mere moments it vanished from sight again.

Duke and I shared a brief moment of relief before being confronted by our teammates. It had been a long time since I had seen Wildwing so frustrated.

"We wanted to see if we could find out what they were up to," Duke tried to explain, "For now we can confirm that they don't really have a plan yet outside of gaining resources."

"What happened to her?!" Nosedive demanded as Mallory took the controls for him.

Before I knew it I was locked in a hug of sorts from my twin as Wildwing patted my head carefully. For a moment I thought I saw regret in Duke's expression as the night's events ran through his mind.

Duke:

As I looked at Heart being protectively hugged by her two brothers, I wondered if bringing her along had been the right idea. We had faced Falcone together with little problems, but tonight had been different. With her powers surfacing and her past on the possible brink of emerging she could have been lost to us somehow. Dragonus now knew what magic she possessed. Would other enemies look at her the same way? As something to try to harness and control?

Yet when Heart pulled away from Nosedive's hug she returned quickly to my side. She then looked at her hands knowing now what resided within her. As we headed home through the night sky we decided to tell the others what all had happened. Everyone else had witnessed her powers before when she had been captured by Wraith, but now we were all certain that Heart was quite possibly not a human from this realm at all.

"I, I want to try and take control of this magic," Heart told the others nervously, "maybe I can use it to fight those lizards when they come back!"

"But I need to learn how to summon it first," she looked to Grin, "Do you know anyone that could help?"

"We'll all help you sis," Wildwing assured her.

As we talked about this my worries soon faded away. As Heart looked to me I felt our memories surfacing in my mind. I remembered when I had first found her that night so long ago now. Moments since meeting her again raced through my thoughts as though reminding me of something critical about who she was. Heart wasn't going to stay hidden away, she was always going to fight. As much as a part of me wanted to keep her safe, I knew holding her back behind me wouldn't be trusting her to continue to grow stronger with us.

For a moment I thought about what we had been put through tonight. I heard Dragonus mocking us for giving in if it meant the other's safety. I knew how harsh it must have sounded for me to tell Heart to not give in for me.

Yet as I had already determined, now as I watched her with the others smiling again as herself, I knew that I would have given up anything to keep her safe. Because I had already given up all that I had known in the past for her.

My life as a wanted thief, an adventurous life I enjoyed had never been questioned before I found her that night. When I realized how lonely and distant from others I had grown to be at that time. Seeing her laugh with her brothers back on Puck World had driven me to hopes that were foolish at best at the time. Somehow fate had thrown a second chance to me, a chance to know her and smile with her. The invasion had spurred this chance into action. I remembered searching for her unknowingly when our home had been hit during the initial attack. I recalled fearing that she had been captured or even killed. When I saw her again I knew she was someone I wanted to protect.

That remained to this very moment. Yet I knew simply protecting her wasn't the answer. When she needed to I vowed to always be there ready to step in to fight for her, but as she grew stronger I knew keeping her from the fight was never what she wanted. I couldn't tell her to stay back anymore than I could tell myself to stop caring for her. It just wasn't possible.

I then noticed her looking at her suit and how it had been torn along with mine.

"We can mend them again," I assured her.

"So is this going to be a thing with you two now? Heading out into the night like this?" Wildwing asked sternly.

Heart shrugged sheepishly and I couldn't help but smile at her.

"Please give us a head's up next time," Wildwing gave up, "And be careful, for your brother's sake!"

Heart gave Wildwing a hug, "I didn't mean to scare you."

Heart:

I then turned back to Duke, recalling the night's events as well. Though as everything rushed through my mind fatigue began to take it's toll. My knees grew weak and I began to falter. Duke quickly got up and caught me, then he held me close to him the rest of the way home.

When we arrived at the pond the night sky was fading with the early light of morning. Duke picked me up carefully and carried me out of the Aerowing. I found myself gently caressing the base of her neck and hair to try and wash away her wounds. She in turn held onto me, brushing her fingers against my chest and throat.

"We're going to get through this fight as a team," Wildwing reminded us taking in our injured forms, "Whenever Dragonus and his men rear their heads we'll be ready for them!"

Duke and I nodded understandingly before leaving for our room.

"Shouldn't they go to the infirmary?" Tanya questioned, almost laughing a little.

"I think they'll be just fine," Mallory assured her, rolling her eyes as she held onto Wildwing's arm.

"I guess things can't ever go back to normal entirely can they?" Nosedive asked regretably.

"I suppose not, but then again, not having a normal life is what lead us down the path we walk now as a team," Grin reminded our younger teammate as we turned the corner down the hall.

I smiled when I heard this. While I had enjoyed our brief time of peace with everyone, being heroes is what had driven us all to live together as we did now. With every battle we grew closer and our morale rose. If I had never had the heart to fight I may never had known anyone but Nosedive and Wildwing, who would be lost heroes to me had I remained with our parents on Puck World. While a part of me missed those early days, I knew deep down I would have never felt complete in them. For I hadn't been.

"When I lived with Nosedive and Wildwing, I was happy," I started softly.

Duke looked at me curiously, "But I always felt like something other than my memories were missing. Maybe a part of me knew you were out there somewhere. When I woke up in their home I thought I heard your voice in my head, but no one around matched it."

"One night when we were outside, I remember trying to catch falling stars through my fingers," I told him.

Duke:

I remembered that night as well. I had seen her and always wondered what she had wished for. Through the months I never asked her.

"I saw ya that night, I was away from the Brotherhood that night an' wandered into the neighborhood," I explained as I carried her up to our door.

I looked into her sapphire eyes again and felt my heart skip as she smiled.

"That night I remember asking for answers, but not about my past," she said to me as I carried her into our room.

"Answers for what then sweetheart?" I asked as I set her gently on the bed.

"I wanted to know how I had ended up where I was. No matter how many times I went over it in my head, I knew I hadn't escaped the two two thugs that jumped me; but Nosedive, Wildwing, and Canard each swore that it hadn't been them. All they knew was that I had been found at their doorstep with a note written by someone. I just always wanted to know for certain who had brought me to my home and new family," she explained, "I wished to meet them, if only once so that I could thank them. And I wished to feel complete again."

A warm smile washed over me as I hugged her. I told her how I had at the time made a hopeless wish of my own to break the silence between us. That I wanted to change because I wanted to meet her.

Then we both knew, that no matter what battles were thrown at us, that giving up the other would never be an option. Neither of us could bare facing things the way they were before, when we were apart and incomplete. I needed her trust in me to remind me why I had changed for the better.

Though as I looked at our soon to be mended bodysuits, we both felt a spark connect us. The thrill of adventure ignighted in us as I pulled her close to me. I then kissed her forehead and leaned back against the pillow we were sitting against as we both gave in to fatigue holding onto one another. As we drifted off to sleep I promised myself that I would never let anyone try to steal her away from me again, so we could stay together adventuring through the nights as we wished to.

Heart:

As I closed my eyes I vowed to grow stronger and learn my magic could do to aid my teammates. I swore no one would use me again and to stay with Duke and my family no matter what it took. Though for that moment I gave in to his warm, strong hold on me and dreamed of us adventuring beneath the moonlight in the future together.


End file.
